South Taconic Trail - Rt 23 to Bash Bish Falls

I finished up the final northern section of the South Taconic Trail today with my son and some friends.  It was a beautiful day to hike, sunny and warm, with temps in the high 50's.  There was a nice breeze up on the tops of the mountains which was nice and kept us cool on this unusually warm late November day.  We started our hike about 10AM at the northern terminus, located on Rt 23 near the Catamount Ski area.  The trail winds along a dirt road for a little while before crossing a field and entering the forest and climbing.  Catamount had been making snow and as we made our way to the top of the mountain and the back side of the ski area we could see snow on some of the trails.

Crossing a field and entering the forest

Views

Snack time at the lift

Once at the top, the trail turns south and heads toward Mt Fray.  The trail goes along the ridge with a couple nice openings with views to the west, looking over Copake Falls and Hillsdale, NY.  The Catskills stand tall in the distance and look quite impressive.  We continued on, loosing some elevation before going up Prospect Hill.  We all enjoyed the views and lingered for a bit but pressed on so we could get to the next view.

State line maker.  Hidden just off the trail.

The trail continues on through hardwood forest, before starting to descend to the one road crossing on this section.  Once across Sunset Rock Road you walk through a green tunnel.  The Mountain Laurel and trees create a tunnel effect before opening up at the junction with a short spur trail to Sunset Rock.  

Sunset Rock offers nice western views as well and we sat for a spell and enjoyed.  Then it was back on the S.T.T.  This is the beginning of the descent to Bash Bish Falls and the car.  It starts out fairly gradual with only some moderately steep sections.  We decided to take the Cedar Brook Trail, a more direct route to the parking area and our waiting car.  The first part of this trail is very steep, descending down to Cedar Brook.

Once at the brook the trail is fairly level, slowly descending down to the parking area.  It crosses the brook a number of times and we all had fun seeing who would fall in, but no one did.  The brook has created a pretty deep gorge along this section with steep terrain on either side.  It was a rugged area. Eventually the trail moves away from the brook and ends across the street from the parking area for Bash Bish Falls.  The parking area was full as we made our way to the car and finished today's hike. We hiked 6 miles and made it to the car just after 2pm.  A great way to spend a warm late November day.

Now to look into the new section of South Taconic Trail recently opened at the southern end.  

Bash Bish Falls and the STT!!

After what has seemed forever I had a day where nothing was pressing and I could get back into the woods and hike.  I decided to hike a section of the South Taconic Trail.  I have done the southern portion of the trail from Alander Mountain to the southern terminus so today I hiked from Bash Bish Falls south to Alander Mountain.  I was solo today so this was an out and back hike, which ended up being about 8.5 miles round trip.  I parked at the upper parking lot and started hiking about 10am. The trail goes down steeply to the viewing area for Bash Bish Falls.

The falls are quite a sight and I enjoyed the view for a few minutes then moved on, I had miles to cover.  From the falls I headed down the trail toward the New York parking area and crossed the river to pick up the South Taconic Trail.  The trail climbs steeply up from the river for about 1.3 miles.

 It is a tough climb to the top, then the trail levels out along the ridge.  Once on the ridge it was a nice hike to Alander Mountain.  It took about 2 hours to hike to the summit.

 I stopped at the Alander Mountain cabin and cooked lunch before the return journey.  The cabin was empty, but looks like it does get a good amount of activity.  It has a wood stove and bunks that will accommodate about six people.  I enjoyed making lunch there as it was out of the wind and has a counter and stool to sit on.

After putting everything back the way I had found it and securing the door I made my way back to the trail and headed back toward the car.  The return trip went well and I was back to the car by 3pm. Today was a beautiful fall day, with bright sunshine and temps in the 40's, a great day to hike. Another section of the South Taconic Trail done.